From Isaac Anumihe, Abuja

Director-General, National Biosafety Management Agency, (NBMA), Dr Rufus Ebegba, has described those campaigning against the approval of Tela Maize by the Federal Government as terrorists.

Tela Maize is a Genetically-Modified Organism (GMO) that has been rejected by the Kenyan and United States governments for being unfit for consumption.

According to Ebegba, those people do not mean well for Nigeria as the government cannot introduce to Nigerians what is injurious to their health.

Ebegba said this in Abuja, at a one-day workshop, organised by the Environment Media Correspondents Association of Nigeria (EMCAN).

According to him, the priority of the government is to ensure the safety of the food its citizens consume.

‘The Federal Government has ensured that this product is safe for the environment and prosperity of the people. Nobody can protect the people like the government. This administration has put in place what needs to be done to protect the citizens and provide for their safety and to ensure that farmers have better harvest and income and live normal lives.

‘The Ministry of Environment has a lot of policies which we put in place to ensure environmental sustainability in the face of changing world,’ he said.

Ebegba, however, regretted that the forests are fast depleting and if they are not maintained, the nation’s food security will be in danger.

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‘Our forest is gradually depleting due to human needs and other endeavours. The forest we have today gives a lot of economic services. The oxygen that we breathe comes from plants.

‘The environment sector must be seen and grouped among security priority of our nation.

‘The environment is very key and if it’s not adequately maintained our food security will be in danger and our lives will be threatened. The health sector will face a lot of challenges and it will be difficult for the government to address these challenges that might emanate from the wrong use and management of our environment,’ he advised.

Earlier, the Chairman of EMCAN, Mr Chuks Onyema Aziken, had stated that journalists covering the environment beat are constrained by finance and lack of skill to do their job. To this end, he recommended constant training and capacity building for them.

‘Journalists covering the environment sector are fully aware of the key challenges but are constrained to bring the issue to the front burner for many reasons such as finance, bureaucratic bottlenecks from government officials in giving information and responding to our requests for vital information and not carrying journalists along in terms of coverage and attending environmental events.

‘A capacity building will be able to improve their knowledge and capacity to report effectively on environmental issues. This is particularly pertinent in relation to the green economy as it is an emerging concept.

‘It is also building on journalists’ professional skills and knowledge of quality journalism standards in the field of environmental and policy reporting,’ he said.

The Federal Government recently granted environmental approval for evaluation and open cultivation of a new maize variety called Tela Maize.